This invention relates to sanitary napkins in general and, in particular, to napkins to be worn by adhering to the crotch portion of an undergarment.
The art is now replete with various suggestions for adhesively attached sanitary napkins. Such products generally consist of an elongated absorbent element optionally enclosed in a body fluid pervious cover on the body facing side thereof and a body fluid impervious cover on the garment facing side thereof. The cover materials are commonly extended beyond the tranverse ends of the absorbent element and sealed together to form short, sealed tabs to fully enclose the absorbent element.
A pressure-sensitive adhesive element is provided on the garment facing side of the napkin, commonly in the form of a longitudinal strip or strips of adhesive extending from near one transverse end of the absorbent element to near the other transverse end and is centrally located with respect to the longitudinal ends.
While, in the main, such products have performed adequately and have also proven to be comfortable to most wearers, for some women and at certain times, there has been evidenced a willingness to sacrifice comfort, to some degree, in favor of greater protection. Specifically, at certain times, it is desirable to have a longer napkin. For example, for nighttime use changes are less frequent and hence protection is paramount while body movements are less frequent and hence comfort is not impaired by such a longer napkin. Also, since flow rates of menstrual fluid vary greatly for some women during her monthly cycle, there are times when extra protection is imperative and times when far less protection is needed. Generally, because of the expense and bother of purchasing assorted sized napkins, women have compromised and chosen only one size, albeit less than ideal at any given time.
Accordingly, there is a need for a napkin which can provide both the comfort of a short napkin with the length of a long napkin when such extra protection is desired.